Dark Crossings (21 page)

“Ruby, what are you doing here?” Lena said.

She instantly hid her board behind her back and shook her
head.

Lena gathered her skirt and sat beside the child. “May I see
what you’re working on?”

Ruby slowly brought out her board. On it, she had drawn the
outline of a small rabbit sitting among the weeds beside the bridge. The drawing
was crude, but Lena saw some underlying skill in its composition.

“This is very nice.”

Ruby shook her head and immediately smeared the picture with
her hands.

“Oh, don’t spoil it.” Lena held the board out of the child’s
reach. “Let me have your marker.”

Reluctantly, Ruby handed it over. With careful strokes, Lena
repaired the missing ears and added a happy expression to the bunny’s face.
“There, I’ve fixed him.”

Taking back the board and marker, Ruby wrote under the drawing,
“It’s a girl.”

Lena smiled. “Sorry. I didn’t know. Let me have the pen again.”
Taking the board and marker, Lena scooted around to hide her effort until she
was finished. Then she said, “Now, all can tell it’s a girl.”

She held the picture up. The rabbit wore an Amish bonnet with
the ribbons tied in a bow under her neck. Her ears protruded through holes on
the top.

Ruby smothered a giggle, with her hand over her mouth. It was
the first sound Lena had heard her make.

“Do you like it?” she asked, and Ruby nodded.

Returning to the board, Lena sketched a somber rabbit in a
black hat with a pained expression above his bushy beard. “Frau Rabbit must have
a husband. The poor fellow suffers from a sour stomach.”

Ruby took the board from Lena and studied it. After a few
seconds, she wrote beneath the picture, “How do you do that?”

“How do I give them expressions? It’s easy.” She drew five
circles along the bottom of the board. In the first one, she added eyes, nose
and a mouth with a small smile. In the second, she placed eyes that were
slightly narrowed with a crease between them, and a flat mouth that turned down
at the ends.

Handing the board to Ruby, she said, “You make a sad face in
the next circle.”

The girl bent over the sketch with fierce concentration. She
tried several times to make a sad face, but was unhappy with each attempt and
rubbed all of them out. On the board, she wrote, “I can’t do it.”

“It takes practice. No one bakes a perfect pie on their first
try. I’ll draw some examples and you can practice copying them.” Soon Lena had
filled in the remaining circles with an astonished face and a sad one.

The next hour flew by as the two sat side by side drawing
artwork that included flowers, grass and the schoolhouse on the hill. It wasn’t
until a buggy turned off the roadway and came toward them that Lena realized how
late it was getting.

The buggy came to a stop beside them. Isaac held the lines with
a look of intense worry on his face. “Ruby, you should have been home long ago.
What are you doing? I cannot waste time looking for you. I have work to do.”

Lena scrambled to her feet. “It’s my fault, Isaac. I was
showing her how to draw and the time got away from me. Don’t be harsh with
her.”

He wiped a hand across his face. Slowly, his expression
relaxed. “Reckon I can’t scold her for listening to her teacher.”

Ruby hopped to her feet and climbed into the buggy. Isaac
looked at Lena. “Would you like a lift home? We go right past your father’s
farm.”

The lengthening shadows told her she was going to be late if
she didn’t accept his offer, but still she hesitated. She didn’t know him that
well, but to refuse would make her appear ungrateful and stuck-up.

She had been curious to know more about Isaac Bowman. Wasn’t
this her chance? With his daughter in the buggy, this might be the perfect
opportunity to find out how he felt about the poaching. If he was involved, he
might reveal that, too. Should she risk questioning him?

He held out his hand. “What harm can come from a simple buggy
ride?”

CHAPTER FIVE

I
SAAC
WAITED
FOR
L
ENA
to make up her
mind. Did she realize how expressive her pretty face was? What caused her
indecision? Was she leery of accepting a ride from a man outside the circle of
her family and friends, even one of her faith? Did she have a special fellow she
didn’t want to upset by accepting a ride from an unmarried man?

Isaac normally didn’t think of himself as unmarried. He’d
promised to love and care for one woman all the days of his life. Now that Ada
Mae was gone, his vow had become meaningless in the eyes of others, but not in
his own mind. Yet here he was, hoping Lena would accept a ride from him.

That he liked spending time with her and enjoyed her company
was something of a puzzle to him. Over the past week he’d made a point to stop
and visit briefly when he brought Ruby to school each morning. Lena was always
polite, but never overly friendly. She certainly hadn’t given him the impression
that she was interested in him as anything other than her pupil’s parent.

Each day, he found himself wanting to spend more time with her.
He’d never expected to feel this way with another woman. It should feel wrong,
but it didn’t. Perhaps her refusal was a good thing. He shrugged his shoulders.
“Suit yourself.”

If she wanted to walk, that was her business. Grasping the
reins, he started to turn his horse around. Ruby grasped his arm and shook her
head. She beckoned to Lena and patted the seat beside her.

Lena smiled at his daughter. “I would be glad of a ride if it
is not too much trouble.”

Pleased at her change of heart, he said, “No trouble at
all.”

Lena climbed onto the front seat, sandwiching Ruby tightly
between them. “If you go by our farm, you must be renting the old Stoltz
place.”

“Only the house and stable. I understand a young Amish couple
is renting the fields.”

“That must be Caleb and Betty Beachy. Father mentioned Caleb
was expanding his produce farm. With their third baby on the way, he needs more
land, and good earth is hard to come by.”

“I don’t know many people in the area yet. Ada Mae, my wife,
was the outgoing one. She was always interested in the goings-on of the
community. She liked meeting new people.”

Isaac stopped speaking in surprise. He never talked about Ada
Mae if he could help it. He glanced at Ruby. She didn’t appear upset at the
mention of her mother. She was drawing on her board and showing her creations to
Lena.

“That is very good, Ruby. Is that your dog?”

Ruby sucked in her breath and glared at her teacher.

Isaac took a second look at his daughter’s sketch. It was
clearly a horse. He glanced at Lena and noticed a distinct twinkle in her eyes.
She winked at him, inviting him to play along.

His heart gave an odd little leap. He stifled a grin and said,
“It looks just like Grandpa Bowman’s dog, Henry. Only Henry’s tail curls up over
his back.”

Ruby wrote, “It’s a horse” in big letters across the top of her
board.

Lena studied the sketch, turning her head one way and then the
other. “A horse? I kind of see that now.”

Isaac chuckled. Ruby stared at him wide-eyed and then glanced
at Lena. On her board, she wrote, “Are you teasing me?”

Lena laughed out loud and patted her head. “
Ja,
child, your papa and I are teasing you.”

A sheepish grin curved the girl’s lips. She glanced at her
papa. He grinned at her and said, “Your papa can play a joke, too. Have you
forgotten that?”

Ruby’s smile widened as she happily returned to her work and
began a new sketch. Lena offered encouragement and suggestions. As the horse
trotted briskly along the blacktop, Isaac forgot about his worries and sadness.
It was wonderful to see Ruby enjoying herself, even smiling. It had been ages
since he’d seen her happy.

After a few moments, he felt Lena’s gaze on him. He glanced at
her and caught a speculative glint in her eye. He wondered what she was
thinking. He didn’t have to wonder long.

“The poaching in this area is really getting out of hand. It’s
hard to believe no one knows who is doing it.”

“I suppose it is,” he replied.

“It certainly is a shame. I hope the men killing our deer
realize how wrong it is and stop.”

“They will stop when the big deer are gone.”

“You seem to know a lot about poachers and their ways.”

Should he tell her about Samuel? Would she understand his
Englische
brother’s strange job? Isaac found himself
wanting to confide in Lena, but he didn’t dare. To reveal Samuel’s presence in
the area might put his brother in jeopardy. Instead, he said, “I have read a lot
about poaching.”

“Reading is a good thing. Do you like to hunt?” She posed the
question with an indifferent tone, but she was watching him intently.

“I reckon I like it as much as the next man. Hunting fills the
larder and stretches the money I must spend for food.”

“But you don’t enjoy hunting for the sake of hunting?”

He didn’t understand where her questions were leading. “Are you
asking if I enjoy killing animals?”

She shrugged. “I guess I am.”

“
Nay,
I do not enjoy it.”

An ATV roared out of the woods on Isaac’s side of the buggy and
swerved past them. Isaac’s mare threw up her head in panic. The driver, dressed
in camouflaged clothing, barely managed to keep from hitting them. The horse
scrambled backward and the buggy’s rear wheel dropped into the steep ditch on
Lena’s side.

Frightened further by the tipping vehicle, Sophie bucked,
lashing out with her back feet. Ruby screamed as Lena tumbled from her seat and
fell out the door. Isaac had only a glimpse of her rolling into the ditch before
his horse bolted down the highway.

Fear took the breath from his body as he fought to bring the
panicked animal under control. He was hampered by Ruby’s death grip on his arm.
When he glanced back at last, he couldn’t see Lena. Was she hurt? After a few
tense moments, he was finally able to bring a wide-eyed Sophie to a
standstill.

“Easy, girl, easy,” he said, hoping to calm the mare and his
daughter. “Ruby,
liebchen,
let go. I need my arm to
drive. We must see if Lena is all right.”

She lifted a tearstained face to look at him. He wanted to pull
her close and reassure her, but didn’t dare let go of the reins. Ruby released
him, jumped out of the buggy and raced back toward her teacher.

Isaac turned the mare around and drove to where Lena sat at the
side of the road. Though her
kapp
was missing and
her hair had tumbled down her back, she seemed in one piece. Grass and weeds
clung to her coat. Ruby was trying to help her up.

When Isaac was sure his horse was calm, he jumped from the
buggy and hurried to Lena’s side. “Don’t move. Are you injured?”

Lena blushed as she stared up at him. “My dignity is sorely
bruised, but that’s all.”

He quickly checked her arms and legs for signs of injury. He
saw only a scratch on her cheek. “Thanks be to God. Your dignity will mend
faster than a broken bone. Are you sure you aren’t hurt?”

“I’m fine,” she insisted.

He helped her to her feet, keeping a firm arm around her lest
she fall. “Take it easy. Does anything hurt now?”

Ruby threw her arms around Lena’s waist and buried her face
against her. Lena hugged the child. “I’m fine. I jerked away when the horse
kicked out, and lost my balance. The thick grass in the ditch padded my
fall.”

The memory of his wife’s pale, limp form sent a chill over
Isaac’s skin. It could have been so much worse. “It was lucky you didn’t land on
the roadway.”

Unwrapping Ruby’s arms, Lena took the child’s face in her
hands. “I’m okay. Don’t be scared. It’s all over now. Let’s go home, shall
we?”

Ruby nodded. She ran down the road a few feet and came back
with Lena’s
kapp.
Lena stepped away from Isaac and
he let his arm fall to his side. At the buggy, he climbed in, then reached out
to help her. Her hand trembled in his grasp, and anger at the careless fool
who’d caused the accident roared to life in him.

“Did you recognize the man on that insane machine?”

“I did not. It happened too fast.” She settled on the seat
beside him.

He fought the urge to gather her into his arms and hold her
close. He didn’t have the right to comfort her in such a manner. Ruby had no
such qualms. She sat on the other side of Lena and kept one arm around her
waist.

Lena repaired her bun with the ease of long practice and
secured it. When she’d settled her
kapp
on her head,
she gave a heavy sigh. “I shall think twice about riding with you again, Isaac
Bowman. ‘What harm can come of a simple buggy ride?’ you said, and then I land
on my…dignity in a ditch.”

Few women could come out of such an experience with their sense
of humor intact. His anger evaporated and a chuckle escaped him.

She rounded on him. “Are you laughing at me?”

“Not at all,” he lied. He turned the buggy around on the narrow
road and proceeded toward her home. With each bump and jolt of the wagon he
could feel her body pressing against his hip and side. Her nearness made it hard
to concentrate on his driving, but the trip was over much too quickly.

When they drew close to Lena’s farm, an
Englische
woman from the house across the road came out to wave them
down. Isaac stopped the buggy beside her. “Lena, can I speak to you for a few
minutes?” she asked.

“Certainly.” Lena glanced at him and said, “I will walk from
here.”

He shook his head. “I’ll wait for you.”

“Nonsense. Take Ruby home. I’m fine. Are you coming to the
school board meeting tonight?”

“I plan on it.”

“I will see you then.” She got out and patted Ruby’s hand.
“Keep practicing your art. God has given you a measure of talent. It is up to
you to put it to good use.”

Short of hauling her back into his vehicle, Isaac had no choice
but to leave Lena with her friend. As he drove away, he missed her warmth and
softness beside him, so much that he had to admit he was coming to care a great
deal for Ruby’s new teacher.

* * *

L
ENA
GAZED
AFTER
Isaac and Ruby as they continued down the road. She wished she was still with
them. Seated beside Isaac’s large frame, she’d felt safe, secure and oddly happy
in spite of her ignoble fall. Surely she couldn’t have such feelings if he was
killing the deer she loved simply for money.

None of her probing had answered that question to her
satisfaction. If she listened to her head, she would steer clear of Isaac
Bowman. If she listened to her heart, she would be thinking about being courted
by him.

She shook her head at such silliness. Her fall must have
rattled her more than she knew. She turned to her friend. “What’s wrong?”

Clara asked, “Is that him? Goodness, he is a big man.”

“Did you want something?” Lena had no intention of getting into
a discussion about Isaac. Her feelings were much too disjointed for her to make
sense of them.

Curiosity faded from Clara’s face, to be replaced with a look
of deep concern. “I didn’t need anything special. I was…I was just wondering if
you had seen my husband today.”

“
Nay,
I have not. I’ve been at
school all day.”

Clara’s eyes suddenly filled with tears. “When I saw you in the
buggy I thought perhaps you’d been to town. I’m so worried about Brad. He hasn’t
been himself since he lost his job. Lately, he’s taken to staying out until all
hours of the night. He won’t tell me what he’s doing. He says I have to trust
him. I do trust him, only it’s hard when he shuts me out.”

Lena drew her friend into a comforting hug. “Brad is a good
man. If he says you must trust him, then that is what you must do. That doesn’t
mean you have to turn a blind eye to his behavior. Don’t stew in silence. Make
sure he knows how much you worry about him.”

“What if he’s seeing another woman?”

“What man would want another woman when he already has the
best? Brad knows how lucky he is to have you. Stop this foolish worry.”

“But what if he is? Something is going on.”

“Shall I speak to him for you?”

“Right! Like he’s going to tell my Amish friend if he’s being
unfaithful.”

“You are letting your imagination poison your heart. Pray for
wisdom and guidance. God will answer you.” There was little else Lena could do
or say to comfort her friend. The couple would have to work through their
problems together.

Clara pulled away and wiped her eyes with the heels of her
hands. “Thank you for listening to me. I don’t know what I would do without your
friendship.”

Lena glanced past Clara to the highway. Isaac’s buggy was
already out of sight. She hadn’t recognized the driver that spooked Isaac’s
horse, but she had recognized the machine. “Clara, does Brad still have his
green four-wheeler?”

“No, he told me he sold it last week. Why do you ask?”

“I thought I saw it in the woods today. Do you know who he sold
it to?”

“I don’t, but I can ask him.”

“Would you? Wait, isn’t that Brad’s truck coming this way?”

Clara turned to look and her tense body sagged with relief. “It
is. That man is going to get a piece of my mind for worrying me so.”

“I’ve heard Papa tell my sister not to scold her husband when
he has an empty stomach. Papa says a man is much more amenable when he is well
fed.”

Clara managed a watery smile. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Lena waved as Brad turned into the drive. He gave a friendly
wave in return and pulled to a stop. Clara walked to his side of the truck as he
rolled down his window.